Novel alimentary pasta made of chickpeas has an important allergenic content that is altered by boiling in a different manner than chickpea seeds

Abstract

Alimentary pasta made of chickpeas has been recently introduced in the market. The novelty and presentation of this food can have a confounding effect on chickpea allergic patients and can pose a risk to them. The allergenic content of novel alimentary chickpea pasta in comparison with regular chickpea seeds has not been analyzed so far. Protein extracts were obtained, and the allergenic content was analyzed with sera from chickpea allergic patients and antibodies against major allergens by western blot, ELISA, dot blot, and cellular assays. Alimentary chickpea pasta showed an important content in IgE-binding proteins and chickpea allergens: 7S globulin, 2S albumin, LTP, and PR-10, similar to hydrated and boiled chickpea seeds. During boiling, more allergens from alimentary chickpea pasta were transferred to the boiling water than chickpea seeds. Novel alimentary chickpea pasta retains an important allergenic content which is affected by boiling by transferring allergens to the cooking water.

Keywords: Allergy; Chickpea; Food allergy; Food safety; Legumes.